Sushi Basket Delivery, Coming Through!
by Roseability
Summary: Girls fall in love. Guys do too, but it's the order that counts. Fluffy story about Takashi's first serious romance. TakaOC
1. Freckles

Disclaimer:** I don't own Prince of Tennis. **This idea came into my head when I watched the early episodes (Is episode 38 early?) and it looked like Takashi had a _girlfriend_ to eat ice cream with. I was extremely happy when I found out, because... in reality, there's not that many females that are in the age generation of POT, and it really corrupts the "straight couple shipper mania." I was shocked when I found out that Yuuki (I think that's her name) was merely his friend's mom. She is _amazingly _young... dang it... Well, can't be helped, can it? Taka-san is the easiest to write a new character for, because he's so sweet and shy (unlike people like Tezuka, who are so cold that I can feel the winter breeze on his expression on a summer's day...).

* * *

_Sushi Basket Delivery, Coming Through!_

Takashi Kawamura was preparing an order for a couple of regulars (customers, not tennis players) when the _sake_ had ran out.

"Oh, geez. Dad's not going to be happy about this."

As usual, his father, being old and helpless, broke his leg while going down the stairs. So, during the time that Takashi was out of school, he had to help him take care of the sushi shop. Luckily, he had already quit tennis playing for at least a couple more years.

Molding the rice in his hand, he reflected on his friends and teammates he had left behind when he was devoting himself to making sushi.

He had left them, but they hadn't forgot him. Echizen sent him a letter from America, thanking him for the soy sauce. And he was sure that Tezuka was proud that he had became the Number One Power player in Japan.

"Er, oyaji? The _sake_ has ran out."

The old man grumbled. "Ach, if only the wine vessel was bigger, I could buy more sake for each day. And business has gone down. We need more money, that is clear. Any ideas, Takashi? Fancier cushions? Bigger selection? Or how about more employees?"

Taka shrugged. In truth, he worked in the sushi shop because he liked making sushi, not because of the business. Unfortunately, that kind of thinking probably would have landed him in bankruptcy, or even in a leased building.

"Wait a minute..."

"What is it, son?" His father studied Takashi's face as if it held all the answers to solving the money problems.

"How about I be a delivery boy? You know, like pizza and stuff like that. Sometimes people are too lazy to get here to eat."

His father shook his head vigorously. "You know I can't get anywhere on this busted leg. Sushi is a reflection of the chef's heart. I make some, and it'll turn out like cement that Americans made mock sushi out of."

"Well then, how about Okaa-san?"

"...I suppose." He gave a long sigh. "You think deeply about the shop, Takashi. I'm thankful for that."

* * *

--A couple days later--

"Oy. Where are you going?"

Jin Akutsu was suffering from the blasted heat in the Tokyo district. _God, it was hot._ Why couldn't he go to somewhere breezy like the ocean?

His mother was unaffected, though. A hard worker, she had gone through worse when she was his age.

"To the airport. There's a business trip, didn't I tell you about that?"

She jerked her thumb toward the calender. There was a note: _Trip for 9 days._

"Oh, if you want to eat out, ask Rina, okay? Though her cooking's not bad, I should think."

"Why should I have to ask my little sister to go eat out?"

"Because, Jin, you're hopeless with money. And you rely on that cute boy, what was his name? Oh, right. Dan Taichi. You rely on him to get free ice cream."

"I do not!"

Yuuki smiled. It was a wonder that the gray haired man was actually her son. He looked more like a child molester than a 16 year old guy.

"Well, ja, ne."

She turned on the car and Akutsu stood and watched as it became a speck on the horizon.

Then another girl stepped on the front porch, her freckles brown as tanned leather, and eyes as blue as the summer sky when it was cloudless.

"Hey, Rina."

Akutsu faced his younger sister after his mother had left. She had a striking resemblance to Yuuki, and everybody said so.

"Want some lemonade?"

She handed him a frothy glass of the tart drink and sipped hers.

"It's so hot. I want some ice cream."

"Me too..." was all he said.

It seemed too exhausting to do _anything._ Even turning on the water faucet was tiring.

Rina yawned. "I'm so tired that I'll order out. What do you want?"

Akutsu was about to say something about chicken teriyaki when an advertisement caught his eyes. Cheap delivery sushi. Perfect.

"Let's have sushi from the Kawamura's."

* * *

Okay, introducing Rina might have sounded a little Mary Sueish (the blue eyes part). But, like I said, I don't find Rina to be the 'drop-dead gorgeous' kind of girl. She has freckles, for god's sake. But I will make her cute. The Sakuno-ish kind of cute. 


	2. First Delivery

Disclaimer: **I don't own Prince of Tennis.** Sorry for the delay. I read a couple of fanfic brochures and been watching a new anime. Read my profile.

* * *

"So, Takashi, how is business going?" 

"Um, great. I got a couple of customers."

The old man looked at his son with approval. The idea might actually work.

Actually, Takashi was lying. He knew that whenever the man was displeased, he got into a rage, fiercer than any of his "Burning!" states.

Then the phone rang. Takashi hurriedly grabbed it, hoping desperately for an order so that he could get out of the shop.

"Moshi moshi?"

"Oi, is this the Kawamura Sushi Palace? I'd like to order."

Akutsu? This had to be a joke. Or maybe the bloke was feeling sorry for him.

"Um, yes, what would you like?"

"A small order eel, tempura-wrapped, some red snapper, and could you combine that into one special package?"

"Sure. Whatever the customer says."

* * *

There was a knock on the door. Akutsu checked his watch. 

"Thirty minutes. Man, for someone that lives close to us he takes his sweet time. Rina, could you open the door?"

Rina frowned. She did not like strangers. And coupled to the fact that Akutsu was sitting on a couch in the room next to the front door, she got ticked off.

"Jin, you're the nearest to the door. Why me?"

"Because the delivery boy is one of my friends. He might get embarrassed that we're taking pity on him."

Rina glared at him. Her brother was annoying the_ heck _out of her.

She opened the door and not thinking that well, she shouted a couple of things.

"We're not taking pity on you if you think that way! I'm just hungry for good sushi. Aghhh, I hate the heat! Maybe I'll just order something else from a different store and I'm sorry for that, Akutsu--

Takeshi was confused. In the commercials, people just accepted the pizza from the delivery boy. Was it different for sushi?

Akutsu got into the front door and handed him a racket.

"**Doryaaa**! Gomen nasai! I will commit seppoku if the sushi doesn't suit the customer!! **Buuurning**!!!"

Now Akutsu took the racket away.

"Oh, here's your order of red snapper, eel wrapped with tempura, and a side dish of other things."

He was surprised to see a younger girl blushing. Hard.

"Ah, sorry. Did I get the wrong order? Or is this the wrong house?"

She shook her head, and held out her hands to accept the food. _He's actually nice, _she thought.

"How much would that be?"

He shrugged. "Dad told me that it's the customer that decides to tip."

Rina laughed merrily. "This is for shipping purposes. Tipping is a different thing altogether. You are so clueless."

"Did I, just now, shout something? I thought there was a racket in my hand."

Rina blushed again.

"Well, since you're so pretty, it'll cost only 900 yen."

She handed the money. "A-arigato."

"No problem."

"Um, what's your name? My brother says that you're one of his friends."

"Takeshi Kawamura. Or, you can call me Taka-san. Everybody does. Well, ja, ne."

He got onto his bicycle and drove off, leaving Rina on the doorstep. And she watched him until he was a tiny speck.

Akutsu was waiting for her as she went into her house.

"Well, you're blushing really hard, and the sushi is getting cold. How much did it cost?"

"900 yen. He gave me a discount."

"How come?"

Rina blushed even harder. It made her look like a radish.

"N-no reason."

"Liar."

* * *

"Why on earth did you give her a discount? Shipping has to cost at least 500 yen!!"

"Sorry, Dad, but, someone handed me a racket! I have to _apologize_ for the state of things!"

Takashi was lying again. It was a blue lie, the kind that you use to cover up one-half of a truth. True, he had a racket in his hand, but she was interesting...

* * *

"I'm not hungry."

Jin spat out his portion of sushi. "What?!?"

"I said I'm not hungry. You can eat mine if you want."

She went upstairs planning to do homework. Then something stopped her.

"The ad... I could call him."

She picked up the phone, then began to dial. "Eight one seven..."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I think Taka-san is a pretty interesting character, only the problem is they don't show enough of him in the anime. Ever notice that when people do Original Characters for POT, they always do somebody that they're interested in like Fuji, Eiji, Tezuka... ect.? I have never seen a really really good Takashi/OC story that--- "that" is an important word--- focuses _only_ on them. So, people, challenge me! Because I am _tired_ of cliques! 


	3. Phone Call and  maybe more

**Author's Note:** Sigh... I _really_ want to delete my Fuji/OC story, but there's a lotta people that likes it. Ironically, this story is much more popular than it since Takashi/OC's are so rare. In fact, it'll be a special occasion if someone DOES write something about Takashi about him and him only. But anyway! I was thinking of naming Rina something like Satoko or Naomi. I changed my mind when I re-watched episode 38... she looks like her mom. And the thing was, the name "Rina" came to mind. So there she is.

* * *

"Eight one seven... two six three... five seven seven nine." 

The ending line was ringing. For a very long time. Rina was deciding that she would hang up, call him later, _whatever_, but luckily, somebody did pick up.

"Hello?" The tone was hesitant. Rina guessed that he didn't get many phone calls.

"Hi, you might not remember me, but I'm--

"The girl that picked up your sushi?"

"Well, yeah. Are you busy right now?"

"Nah, we're through cleaning now. I was just getting to bed."

"I forgot to tell you. My name's Rina."

"Rina? It doesn't suit you."

Rina could feel herself blushing. She had a couple of boyfriends before, and each and every one of them told her that she should have a more cuter name.

"Some guys told me that. But I like my name. I like it a lot. Mom told me she named me after a pop star."

"Oh. I see."

Rina could tell that he didn't, but she felt like he was one of the shy guys. Perhaps he had never dated before.

"Never mind about my name. What were you doing about that racket? That was pretty weird, you know."

"Just forget about it. I turn into a different person when I hold a tennis racket."

"Do you still play?"

Taka paused.

"Er, sorry. Did I offend you?"

"No. I just-- I just quit this year."

"Why?"

"I wanted to focus on sushi."

Takashi stared at his feet. For some reason he felt extremely hot. It didn't sound right. _I wanted to focus on sushi._ Sushi, of all things.

"Oh, really? Can I order some more sushi tomorrow?"

"Sure."

* * *

Akutsu was eavesdropping on the conversation. _He wasn't worried, he both knew them_, _they wouldn't be in that kind of relationship. _Or were they? 

He sighed. He had a rep as a punk, but his weakness was his sister. She was so cute, and he always felt a pang when she went on dates. And he took it personally when she was dumped. Plus Takashi. Wasn't he worried about this sudden change of events?

Jin was stressed. He would usually rely on more food, but this time, knitting. It was a great stress reliever. He had come up with six feet of the scarf/blanket.

Screw the sports players. Knitting is fun.

* * *

"Well, bye." 

Takashi hung up. That was the longest conversation he had ever had with a female, not including his mother, great grandma Hajime, and Yuuki. Though it was kind of nice, sort of. He found the female presence oddly refreshing.

"Who were you talking to?" His mom had opened his door.

"Rina." Whoops. He could certainly keep secrets.

"Your girlfriend?"

Takashi could answer an honest question if he had a true answer. So he shrugged. It was the right answer, anyway.

His mother winked at him and said, "Talk to me if you need any flirting tips."

* * *

Akutsu woke up in the morning feeling oddly disturbed. He had a dream that Kawamura had delivered the wrong sushi to his house. Then again, without his racket, Taka-san would be as hopeless as a circus macho man having to stay in Barbie's dream collection bedroom. 

He looked at the digital alarm clock that rested on the nightstand. 10:47 A.M. There was beads of sweat on his forehead, collecting until they were a jumbo dribble of saltwater running down his hair and into his eyes. Gross, and also highly sticky. He walked out of the sunshine to wash his face.Akutsu lay down on the ground, appreciating the cool bathroom tiles. They never got too hot like carpet. The air conditioning wasn't on yet, but they had to conserve energy. Damn those environmentalists. Had they _ever_ lived in Tokyo in the summer?

"Oy, Jin! What the heck are you doing on the floor?"

"Lying down. What's it to ya?"

Rina had made her appearance, dressed in pink spaghetti straps and short shorts. Obviously she didn't care how much skin she showed.

"... Nothing. It's just that Taka-san invited us to a lunch."

"And?"

"Never mind. I'm going."

Akutsu shrugged. "Have a good time."

"I will." And she left, slamming the door.

Akutsu mulled it over. "Takashi invited her to a lunch... Wait a second...

WHAT?!?"

* * *

Several minutes ago, Mrs. Kawamura had pestered her son for the phone number of Rina. 

"We have caller ID. And I saw you write down the number. Now give it!"

"But Mom, what are you going to do with it if I do?"

"Call her, and make you guys eat out."

"No! She's just somebody that I met two days ago! We're not close or anything!"

"Who _cares_? You're seventeen, Takashi, and you don't even have a relationship? That's crazy. Now give me the number!"

"Noooooooo!"

The argument would have lasted for at least two hours unless the man of the household hadn't popped his tired eyes out of the bedroom.

"Here's the number, hon. Takashi,_ you_ get the rest of the day off. I need my sleep." And he threw it into the air, not intending the chaos that were sure to follow.

Time slowed to a halting stop as the two fanatics rushed to receive the slip of paper. To truly describe it, it would be impossible, because in a world where time does not exist, there is no such comparative as _too late, early, on time_. Both of them turned into Olympic marathon athletes.  
The effect was spectacular. The banana pudding that Mrs. Kawamura had made was utterly destroyed, the organized term paper that Takashi had prepared for summer homework flew into the sky like autumn leaves, and finally, the one emerging victorious was his mother.

Totally oblivious to the damage, she dialed it on the phone and asked for Rina.

"Yes... that seems reasonable. Ooh, of course. Uh-huh.. yes... yes. Do invite your friends over... good bye, dear."

Takashi was practically dying of embarrassment. And no one would ever care.

* * *

Eiji's cell phone had rang. Flipping the tiny speaker, the screen showed the Kawamura's phone number.

"I didn't know Takashi was going to call me today. Oh well. Moshi moshi?"

* * *

Fuji's portable telephone rang. Right in the middle of him watering his cactus.

"What is it?" He asked, obviously irritated. Then his expression changed."Oh, really? Of course. Right away. Yes."

* * *

----**  
Author's Note: **I love moms. They're so awesome.  
Okay, now that I have three chapters down, I'll go and write something for Oishi. He has an interesting personality, so expect longer chapters. 


	4. Banana Pudding and Coffee

**Disclaimer:** Woo hoo! I'm on to Chapter Four and no, **I don't own Prince of Tennis.** Let's see how great the Seigaku team is at stalking. Wink, wink.

* * *

There were a couple of people outside of Kawamura's. Most of them were regulars. 

Momoshiro crouched on a nearby corner of the sushi shop. He was equipped with a walkie talkie, a motorcycle, and a racket.

"This is Peach One. No drastic change in environment."

There was a voice replying back. "Good. According to Inui's data, Takashi should be going to Hirosue's, a restaurant famous for their desserts. We've been there before. Check you GPS if you don't remember."

Momoshiro hissed at the small communicator. "I do remember, Eiji. I wouldn't miss this out for a million yen."

"Oh really? Then would you miss it out for a, uh, billion yen?"

"Yeah. I could buy infinity burgers with that much money. But it can't be helped that you don't have a billion yen, can it? Can't be helped..."

* * *

At noon, the sun was roaring. Soundlessly, yet powerful. It reminded Rina of a lion she had seen at the zoo. 

"So, uh, Taka-san, where are we going?"

"Over there." He pointed at a cafe where it was advertising sweets.

"Oh, I've been there before."

"Really?"

The conversation went on smoothly, as if there was a script. Movie-wise, it felt too strained, too, because they tried to not notice the camera recording every nook and cranny of their (there is no other way to say this) _date_.

Fuji was wearing all green and brown, total camouflage. He was on a mission, the kind where people would literally kill to swap places right now. He knew at least three people who would. One was Taka-san's mother. Two was Rina's brother, Akutsu. And three, Sengoku, because he was continuously trying to attract her attention by flirting with other girls to make her jealous. Man, what a guy.

"Yeah. A guy took me here-- oh my God, I shouldn't have said that."

"It's all right. People I know have girlfriends and boyfriends before. And alternative evil egos, like me."

"Like you? Definitely."

She smiled at him, and he noticed for the first time there was a dimple on her cheek. It made her charming and mischievous. He wondered why he wasn't stuttering like he usually did when a pretty girl like the ones at school tried to order some plate of sushi. Usually he would either screw it up or his mom would come to the rescue.

Her smile turned cold. And he did too, because this time he hadn't a clue what happened.

"Taka-san. Who is the guy with brown hair and a camera recording us? Because people aren't supposed too. Usually they're either perverts or stalkers or _something_. And it's interrupting our date."

Behind Takashi, there was a young man with evil blue eyes glaring at Rina.

"Oh come off it," Fuji scoffed. "What are you kidding? His mom made us--

Takashi had thrown a bit of the homemade banana pudding at Fuji mouth. Then, resorting to desperate measures, he turned it off and grabbed Rina by the arm, pulling her away from Fuji.

"Come on! In five minutes they'll have canceled our reservation."

"Oh. Okay. Whatever makes you happy," and Rina ran as fast as he wanted her to run, go wherever he wanted to get her, all because they certainly weren't going to the dessert cafe. They weren't even going to go by plans anymore.

* * *

They stopped at a shrine, old and ancient and dusty. Rina could hear all the cicadas crying in the heat of the day. It made her feel a little tired and scared, but at least they were far away from the people that were trying to chase them. 

"Those guys," she said after a while, "Were they after you? Or me?"

Taka shrugged. "I have no idea. They used to be on my old tennis team."

"_What?!?_ Why were they following you anyway?"

"I don't know. They think it's funny. But that's because they have as much experience as a twelve year old on matters like relationships."

Rina kept quiet on that.

Takashi smiled vaguely. They were sitting together on a stump of a big oak tree, and he noticed that they were pretty close. Not touching, mind you, but close like friends. He wondered once if he would ever find a place of peace, and there he was. Calm. Tranquil. Serene.

Rina, however, dispelled the silence. There was a giant cicada on her thigh and it was bothering her enormously.

After squirming for a couple of uncomfortable moments, it finally flew off, and she gave a sigh of relief. There was something creepy about their eyes...

"Do you hate bugs?" Takashi asked her. He had been watching Rina the whole time.

She shook her head furiously. "No, I don't."

They both knew she was lying. Takashi raised one of his bushy eyebrows, something that he had learned at the movies.

"Well, I do, but it doesn't stop me from doing things outside the city. I like camping and hiking."

"Hmm... Well, I'm not so sure about camping. I like Tokyo."

She stood up, and Takashi did the same. They walked toward a coffee shop and he ordered two iced cappuccinos.

* * *

Fuji walked back to base with a mouth full of banana pudding, complete with whipped cream. It was delicious.

Momoshiro did not seem happy. Nor were Eiji.

"Geesh, Fuji, I thought you were an expert blackmail."

Fuji swallowed, then said, "The pudding was so good that I_ had_ to give them a little privacy. I'm ditching this and I'm asking his mom to make more."

"... Ho-kay, Fuji. I think you're nuts."

"You'll be nuts when everyone finds out this picture of you and this girl making out. Say, who's that blue haired girl?"

Eiji got livid. "Shut up! Shut up, Fuji, or I'll-- I'll-- "

Fuji smiled. "Stutter at me? Come on. I know better."

Momoshiro got interested. "Ooh, who's your girlfriend, Eiji? You can tell me. It'll be our dirty little secret."

* * *

Walking her home, Taka-san felt happy that Rina didn't reject him.

"Um, Rina?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks." There, something coherent and easy to understand.

"You too." She smiled, and waved as she went up the front porch. Her pale blue eyes sparkled for the first time, and Takashi was glad, in spite of all the things that went wrong today, that he had seen it.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Yay! Taka-san goes on his first date, Fuji didn't do anything, and it didn't end up too mushy. So far so good. 


	5. Aozu

**Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis.** I wish I could, because I have the ants in my pants to start a new manga only I don't have enough guts to draw an _extremely_ hot guy. Like Shiraishi from Shitenhouji or Kajimoto from Jyosei Shonen. They also are my favorite crack pairing. (laughs manically) Even though nobody wrote about them yet... sniff sniff...

Anyways, I just want to tell you guys, that I hate banana pudding. I made it that Fuji liked whatever I hated. Such as wasabi. It's too spicy for me. XD

* * *

Akutsu woke up disturbed as usual with a pink fluffy blanket draped on his head. He had a strange affinity to pink. His tennis racket was a lovely deep shade of rose, and there was very, very, _very_ secretive dress someone had given him for New Year's in the closet. Reserved for hard stress days. 

He stabbed holes in his knitting artwork. He pretended that they had voices. Which was normal. He had no friends until he headed into the karate dojo, and even then Takashi wasn't all "best friends forever" with him.

Knitting Needle #1 said in a breathy falsetto, "Oh, I'm Rina. I'm going out with your best friend, older brother."

Knitting Needle #2 was him. "But why? Why not some other guy?"

"Because he's so nice. And he even did this for _me_..."

Akutsu dropped the crocheting and looked at it for a long time. He didn't need to be paranoid. Well, it _was_ his sister. The door slammed and he had confronted Rina in a _you're-going-to-sleep-with-him! _accusation. He liked Kawamura and his sister was cool, but them together? It was like mashed potatoes and jelly. Only people that didn't know how to gag would be able to swallow the sweet concoction. The whole idea of them being a couple was enough inspiration for him to write a sappy edition of those trashy romance stories.

_And then they're going to live happily ever after, huh?_ Akutsu thought this over and over.

Rina tapped his shoulder when he was in a deep train of thought. "Yo, Jin. Don't take this seriously. Takashi and I aren't... a couple yet. And why haven't you switched to the color purple yet? The pink makes you look like one of those Barbie dolls I used to have where the dog next door snapped the head off."

Jin jumped a foot into the air, looking like a lecherous old man trapped in a girl's bedroom.

"Anyways, there's a bigger problem. Mom's hooked up with some square she met at her business place."

"**What?!?**"

* * *

Yuuki was at a fancy restaurant trying to eat the escargot without gagging, while her business partner was wooing her without much success. 

"So, um, Yuuki, do you want to do anything tomorrow while we don't have any work?"

The lady sighed melodramatically. Being a bachelor for seventeen years was boring, though she hadn't had much taste for men after her ex-husband, Satoshi had left her two kids for good. He was so good looking, that was why. Her daughter had followed in her footsteps and now she had to pay for all that raising crap. Still, it was interesting, taking care of them. Jin had turned into a all-time punk with a hint of homosexual urges and Rina really was an accomplished girl.

"I'm sorry, Tsuyoshi-sama. Please call me by my surname. I have much work after the business proposition."

This was obviously a lie, but the guy was_ so boring_ in her standards. Why on earth was he so interested in her?

* * *

Kawamura had turned up in Rina's house dressed in a dark blue polo shirt with jeans and tennis shoes. He had received an urgent phone call saying that it was an absolute emergency. What the heck could it be? 

The door opened, and he found Rina beaming at him. He smiled back.

Akutsu mimed barfing in his cereal bowl, but stopped after his younger sister shot poison darts out of her eyes. She had been capable of doing worse with her hands and a nearby nunchuck, specially ordered from the Teenage Mutant Turtles Fan Club catalog.

"You look so cute, Taka-san. But you have to change back. Here."

She handed him a sweater and sweat pants. She herself was wearing a jumpsuit. All of it was pitch black.

"We have a super super secret mission today. But we need three people, and Sengoku, our right-hand man, is off to the karaoke bar to show off. So Taka-san, you'll be the substitute today."

"What are we doing?"

This time it was Akutsu who answered through a mouth of Kellogg's Corn Flakes. "We're (chew) going on an espionage and (chew) to collect (munch) intelligence." He swallowed, and then said, "We're going to snoop on our mom's date. And possibly ruin it."

"What? I mean, why?"

He shrugged. "We always like our mother to be single. That was the reason why I poured the milkshake on you when you were still in Seigaku. No offense, mate. Rina's still in Yamabuki Junior High. The women's team is beyond the Kantou level, so no worries."

Takashi blew his bangs in frustration. This was what Eiji and Momoshiro and Fuji liked to do in their spare time. Not him. He just hoped that the couple ended together, end of story, goodbye. And _he_ thought that Rina was actually normal, kind...

"Forget it. It sounds like something jerks would do."

"Wait one minute," Rina said, eyes closed. "Would you like it if your already long dead great-aunt took over your job at the sushi place? That's how we feel if a stranger took over somebody's place. It's like, a father we'd never had. So help us all, until we call your mom telling how horrible her pudding was."

Pause. Then he stopped completely.

"Oh, all right. But one time only. And no black."

"Fine, no black," Rina agreed pleasantly. "You do look kind of cute in that polo shirt anyway. Though I'd recommend the collar being up. And undo a couple of buttons. Let me see your chest. Go for the boy-next-door kind of look. Handsome, but not a pretty boy."

Takashi blushed, but complied. He didn't think that it was polite to refuse a girl's request.

Akutsu put on surveillance cameras and a pair of night vision goggles. This time, they were the McDonald's Kid's Meal toy that were all the rage because they actually worked. Not advanced models or anything, but enough to see what happened. His gray hair drooped in the summer humid hair. It was seriously getting all the hair gel out.

"And now, the inner plans. Listen up everyone..."

* * *

"Inui! What the heck are you doing here in a five-star restaurant?" Takashi hissed as the waiter came up to them casually. 

"I work here part-time. They like my juices because it shuts all the customers up. And also because if we threaten them with the Aozu they'll buy the Truffle a la Caramel chocolates, which are worth at least 30,000 yen. Profits are getting pretty high, thanks to me."

Kawamura shuddered involuntarily. He could still remember the time where they had gone bowling, and _that_... stuff had actually managed to knock out Fuji for time being. He still couldn't believe Inui made a living out of distributing those horrid drinks.

"Yuck. Listen, could you do me a favor?"

"That depends. There's a seventy-five percent chance that I could possibly harass a customer for you. They won't fire me, I'm too valuable. Which one is it?"

"The one where the lady is eating snails and the guy's trying to woo her. The table in the corner."

Inui pushed up his glasses. "Hmm... it already looks like the woman's having a _fabulous_ time. But, as you wish, I'll pour down a bottle of Iwashimizu down his New York cheesecake. Would you also like the Steak Special, Kawamura? It's only 50,000 yen, cheaper than most steaks. And there's a free bottle of Bordeaux 1990 _and_ concert for the Chocolates if you had the right raffle ticket number." His voice dripped with sarcasm.

"Ah, I'll pass. Thanks a lot, Inui."

"No problem. You'd better get out of here fast, because there is a ninety percent chance that you might not be welcome here."

Already the majority of the recipients were glaring at Takashi as though he was ruining their special occasion. He hurriedly said a quick apology and rushed out of the French double doors, earning a complaint from the waitresses that were performing a tea ceremony for show in front of all the American tourists.

Inui looked at his palm when the doors closed. He found a headphone and a pepper spray. "Oh..." was all he said.

* * *

"Did you give it to him?" Rina asked, at a nearby store, where they were selling postcards, a flat rate of 1,500 yen each. They were on a particularly ritzy side of the Tokyo district. There were beautiful buildings, covered in ivy, and there were some horse and carriages on the cobbled street but no sign of a friendly paper covered door, nor was a sushi parlor in sight.

"Yeah," Takashi replied. Then he remarked, "This place really isn't Japanese. It makes me feel like I'm in London or somewhere in England."

"I've been here loads of times," Rina said. "My mom; she's a secretary of an international company. So she often does business stuff. Tokyo is all about international trading, so they built a foreign street. This is the result. They even have a movie theater where you can see American movies."

"Cool. Do you ever go there?"

"Sometimes. It's a great way to improve your English. Look. I can even say, '**Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious**!'"

"You're kidding. That can't be a word."

"It _is_ a word."

"Stop your flirting with him already." Akutsu's voice broke out on her mike. "We need to get back to base. Now."

Rina winked at Taka, and said, "All right, your master calls. We should go to find out what he wants."

---

Back at home, the trio watched the laptop intently as the chaos took over the restaurant. The man had choked on a piece of dessert and turned blue.

"This is funner than the time where Tezuka tried to tutor a new girl in his class," Taka commented.

"Shh," said Rina.

* * *

**Author's Note:** That was so much fun to write. I love messing around with Akutsu's character because as far as I'm concerned, he's the second most likely to be gay. The most like guy in all of Prince of Tennis to be homosexual would be Mizuki. Purple shirt with pink flowers, how manly. Snigger... 


	6. Crepes

**Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis** because I suck at tennis and drawing hunky men. But I _can_ draw girls, which is the reason why I watch way too many shojo and magical girl animes. Might as well chuck my head on a gullotine and do a service for all the yaoi fans out there. We love you all, but this time, I'm going to be the straight shipper for now! XD XD XD Sorry for the slow update. I was busy_. Really _busy.

* * *

"Did you hear that?" Yuuki asked Tsuyoshi as a weird drilling sound was above their table. 

"No I don't," he answered primly. "Is it disturbing you?"

"...No. Never mind it anyway."

* * *

"This is funner than the time where Tezuka had to tutor a new girl in our class," Takashi remarked, as he observed Inui pouring a whole pitcher of Aozu into the classy soup bowls. 

"Really? He's your captain... right? What happened to the poor girl?"

Takashi frowned. As the last chapter says, he never was one to eavesdrop.

"They went out in secret after a couple of months. Nobody know except me because my sushi parlor is _always_ the place where they take first dates. I have no idea what happened to them after that. Not even Fuji knows."

Rina smiled. It was a happy-ever-after for them. "Wow. Thanks... for telling us."

"It's okay. I know that you wouldn't tell the whole world, right, Rina?"

He looked expectantly at her and she nodded.

She felt that she should tell him something private, but she reasoned that she didn't need to. Besides, Akutsu was there.

Akutsu looked up, smoking a weed and staring at the laptop screen.

"Oy, Rina. Look at this now. There's this guy, somebody from your tennis team, Kawamura, he's spritzing the poor dude with the pepper spray."

"What?!? Is that what pepper sprays are for?"

"Um, yes."

* * *

"NOOOO!!!!" Takashi cried as he beat the laptop indignantly. He was such a sucker for any of the hurt or wounded, like Oishi. (A/N: See my last story.) 

Akutsu looked disturbed. "Chill, man. Relax, _relax_."

Kawamura looked outraged. "I didn't want Inui to do this! Buurrrning!!!"

By now Rina looked concerned. "You can go into the burning state even without a tennis racket? Chill pills, Ta-ka-shi."

She put a finger on his lips, and using her feminine charms and personality, she got him to shut up.

"Shh. This matter is not finished yet."

* * *

Inui Sadaharu was having a lot of fun. First, he got a victim to try the newest batch of juices. Then he seasoned the steak by "spraying" the infamous pepper spray. Oh, yes. He was having a field day. 

The lady looked alarmed at her companion, who seemed to mutter a string of incomprehensible phrases under the spell, obviously leading Yuuki to believe that he was actually in a deluded state of mind. She took out a cell phone and dialed 9-1-1.

"Um, waiter? Do you know why he is like this?" She pointed a finger at Tsuyoshi, who was slowly but surely turning blue.

Inui smiled, a taut leer at his lips, radiating everywhere the aura of evil. "I have _absolutely_ no idea."

* * *

"Mmm..." Rina hummed pleasantly. "Revenge gives me a warm fuzzy feeling. Ne, Jin?" 

He nodded sagely. "Yes."

Kawamura had his eyes opened, shocked. Whoever thought Rina was an innocent poodle puppy clearly _did not_ know her well enough.

Then Akutsu whispered in his ear, "Idiot. Take her somewhere."

That just made things worse. He wasn't exactly a novice at girl things, but just the thought of Rina...

"C'mon, Rina. Wanna go for some crepes?"

"Um..."

And then he saw it. She was enjoying turning that man blue. She was caught between crepes and revenge. No, maybe a bulldog puppy. That was one kind of breed Rina could be classified in.

"I'll have the mocha-chocolate!" she said in a sing-song kind of voice, and hearing her voice made him feel happy. Kind of. Just like when Fuji asked him to borrow his racket, but that was a different story.

"What flavor are you? I think you're kind of like strawberry and also a little spicy too." She tilted her head. "Hmm..."

"You're talking about my alter-ego, right?" Takashi was smiling, as if Rina had said something funny and he was waiting for the right timing to laugh.

Jin gnashed his teeth. The author was taking her sweet time torturing him with the essence of pink bunnies, and now, he had to suffocate through the cute sugary stuff without being allowed to gag.

He left the room. No need to see the rest of the peep shows.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I have a severe writer's block, that's why I can't think of good scenarios, and that is really frustrating. I managed to turn everything sappy, but... it's not interesting, so... it's Labor day, and I should do something productive... 


	7. Sushi

**Disclaimer:** The format in the fanfiction place is a little weird, so I don't really know if I'm writing enough... **I don't own Prince of Tennis** because I already have a job keeping up with all these stories. No, I will _not_ write an OC for Ryoma because he belongs only to Ryuzaki and her only. Not someone who can beat him in ten minutes and not somebody who is strikingly beautiful. Most of my OC's I try extra hard to not make them into Mary Sues (they make me gag), but you never know... I am a legitimate human being and I have the ability to screw up. I don't have heavy exams or stuff like that so don't expect hiatus. Oh! One more thing. I don't have a beta, but just bear with me. I would like to improve by myself.

* * *

"You're working so hard as a sushi chef, Takashi. What makes you so pumped up today?" 

His father, miraculously recovering from the strains of broken legs, had managed to stuff a scallop in a cone of seaweed without it looking like an ice cream cone. Kawamura was especially glad, ever since that the customer value had gone up. They were attracting more publicity ever since the quote of 'cheap but quality' had been written in the newspaper.

One such thing involved Rina in a string clad bikini.

It was her idea in the first place. He had let it slip that the ad didn't work and now he had to cough up cash to insert a picture of her beside the One Thousand Yen Only! green letters next to the butchered oysters.

"It's okay, Taka-san." She had said, cajoling him slowly and telling him that it was a good idea. "I'm not scared of perverts at all. Jin taught me karate! He's a tough cookie to beat."

He sighed, and then panicked when Momoshiro and Eiji, two of his teammates, had entered into the sushi parlor.

"Oi, Takashi!" They waved their hands in the air, completely oblivious to the obvious discomfort of him around customers.

"Dad?" He asked, hoping that he would say no and not face them. Rina had an uncanny resemblance toward the Chocolates and he knew that she would be the first thing they would ask about when he got to their table.

"Yeah. Go already. Greet them."

"Eh, Kawamura-sempai? Who is this piece of babe in here? Is she the one that was on your _date_?"

Takashi could have died right then and there. Momoshiro's voice was good enough to reach the other side of the room, and he was already trying to avoid them in the midst of chaos.

He blushed hard, a _kawaii _maroon hue, and that told the others as good as it got.

"Eh?!?" Eiji was shocked. "Wah, you're so lucky. Is she a model? Or a stripper?"

"NO!!! I mean, she's just a customer who I delivered sushi to! She forced me to take pictures when I said that the ad wasn't working for us. And then, boom! It's working, and now I _really _have to get back to work."

He rushed out of the table area and then began chopping leeks and miso as fast as he could in a quick manner. Yes. Just focusing on the job made things easier.

Back to the diners at the table. Eiji was staring at Takashi in a new light, and Momo was furiously blinking as though his eyes were connected to the power grid.

"Kawamura-sempai. He's 'the man'. He can get anybody with that shy nature of his. All the chicks love that shy and burning side of his." Momo declared.

"Yeah. I want a strip model too." Kikumaru said enviously.

It was kind of clear that both of them were being very horny at the moment. So they noticed the very millisecond when a certain girl had entered the parlor. Her name started with an R. And ended with an A.

In five seconds flat they had both shoved their way through the crowd and introduced themselves.

"Hi! My name's Momoshiro and you can call me Momo-chan for short. I'm a friend of Kawamura's. Are you?"

"Um, that guy over there is a pervert, don't mess with him, nya. I'm Kikumaru and I think you look a lot like one of the Chocolates. Are you Ringo? You look a lot like her. I mean, the honey hair and all."

Rina smiled. Three guys being nice to her. She could _definitely_ get used to this.

"Don't pay any attention to that red-haired guy. He just wants to see you scantily clad in that red stringy bikini again. He's the real pervert, I mean it?"

"Saa. This looks like fun. Ne, Rina?"

She jumped. There was a short guy behind her. But once he made himself know, nobody could mistake the presence of the sadistic tensai.

"In fact, the banana pudding was _really_ good. Do you mind sharing recipes?"

"Ah, um, it's actually Taka-san that has it, not me. And, um, what are you doing?"

"...Nothing."

Momo and Eiji were dying to interfere but there was the price of their life, and most people, not including Mizuki Hajime, would pay special attention to the ominous threat of doom that shadowed through his voice.

She was glad that Takashi was interrupting.

"Rina? What are you like, doing?"

"These guys," she pointed to Momo and Eiji, "were hitting on me." And to Fuji, "He's going to kill me if he doesn't get an extra supply of pudding with extra whipped cream and a cherry on top."

Rina noticed that he had a giant cleaver knife in his hand, and didn't bother to tell anyone. The weapon was a direct statement, and even Fuji didn't bother saying anything when Taka-san was in the burning-kill-protective-state with a neon pink aura around him.

Them gone in ten seconds, she sat in an empty table. Most of the customers had left and they were alone, sitting next to each other, secluded in a corner.

"Thanks. You said they were your tennis teammates? That's just crazy. First they stalk us and then they try to take me away. I guess you guys have a lot of fun together?"

She was smiling, but it was a wistful smile.

"Yeah. We're kind of like one big family, so it doesn't bother me much. They're pretty clingy so..."

He shrugged, and then she did something unexpected.

"You don't mind if _I'm_ clingy, do you?"

She put her arms over him. It felt so good to be in contact with him, his warm body, and the smell of raw fish mingling in with the atmosphere.

Takashi was surprised, to say the least. Her hair was falling like a cascading waterfall, and he was breathing in her perfume, an odd mixture of cantaloupe and cucumbers. A sweet scent, he thought dazedly. He couldn't relax.

"Close your eyes," she whispered, and he complied. The pepper spray. A prize.

Rina slipped him the small silver object into the palm of his hand and slowly withdrew her arms. No kiss. Which was kind of disappointing, she observed. But she was tired, too tired to give him one. She wanted to see him today, to talk a little about the shop, just being with him.

But the boys had given her a hard time. They drained all the youthful energy she had in her and then she had to tattletale her boyfriend on them. Maybe it was romantic in a way, but that was uncalled for in her plans.

Boyfriend. An unfamiliar term. She had one before, but it was just kid stuff. There was a different sense when she was going out with other people, experiencing a first love's kiss, a first date, meeting a romantically challenged boy, being timid in front of him. She wasn't the dominant person in a relationship. Usually the guy was. And that hadn't turned out so well.

She was the one in control. It was awkward to her the same way that the color pink was to Akutsu.

It was a bizarre adventure. And she liked it.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I really enjoyed writing this. Somehow, the words popped out, and they just... made sense. Rina is a protective kind of girl, so there you have it for her behavior and all. It's easy to imagine Taka-san breathless, but I'm sure he has more experience in the realm of girls (at least more than Ryoma, that clueless boy...) and that he would be hyperventilaring anytime soon...  



	8. Harajuku Girls

**Disclaimer: **I really hope you guys don't like happy endings, because Mary Sues do, or they end up dead. Not that it's has to happen to this story, it just happened to come to me while I was watching the soaps on TV. Hmmm... and **I still don't own Prince of Tennis.**

* * *

There was a glass flute on the fireplace of the Akutsu's house. A charming though somewhat dull suitor of Yuuki's had given it to her for her thirty third birthday and ironically it was also the year that Jin had taken up tennis. It was at this moment that Yuuki had picked it up, gingerly, because it _really_ was delicate. She had came back from the business trip and already her daughter had a new boyfriend. _Eww._ It meant looking at goopy scenes in the house, though Rina had kept it to a minimum when she entered her senior year of junior high school. 

Yuuki had nearly choked when she heard his name. Apparently her son hadn't been so polite with his 'friend' and she had thought maybe Taka-san wouldn't want to visit their house anymore. And then her only daughter was going out with him?

It made complete sense to her even if Jin couldn't understand the logic in it. Maybe (and she crossed her fingers for this one) they would get married someday. Just so that Rina wouldn't go through a cheating bastard like her own father. She cursed to herself. _Satoshi._

The telephone rang and she picked it up, expecting the worst when Takashi said politely, as he did when he didn't have a racket in his hands, "Is this the Akutsu residence?"

"Yes, it's Yuuki speaking." She decided the best thing to do was to surprise him a little.

"Er! Um, you might not know this, but--"

"You're going out with my daughter."

"Pretty much..."

"It's okay," she reassured him, "I know you're a good guy. She deserves you. Now, who did you want to call now?"

She was almost certain that he was blushing hard when he uttered quietly, "Rina."

"Okay. Give me a second. Oi! Rina! Somebody wants you!"

"Hello? Takashi?"

"Hey." He didn't sound nervous this time, and it was better that way.

"So, what's up?"

"AreyoufreeonSunday?" The words had tumbled out of his mouth, and though he already knew he was going to screw up, he couldn't help it. It was like Kaidoh listening to the affairs of the other regulars. He was inexperienced, though he knew he was improving by leaps and bounds.

Rina, fortunately, had some experience with dealing with please-don't-leave-me-in-an-awkward-situation pleading. She could hear him stumble. But hopefully not trip, because that would give him too much of a dominant vibe. And she didn't want that at all.

"Why Sunday?"

"Because it's the day before the end of summer vacation."

Rina slapped her head. She should have known! Then she could've finished all her homework and then spend the rest of her time gloriously under the golden ripe sun.

"Oh, sorry, I have homework to do."

"I do too, but maybe we could, you know, spend it together? Something like that?"

She could hear the desperation in his voice. They weren't in the same school, or neighborhood, or street. It was, literally, the last chance.

"Sure."

---

They rendezvoused at the department store in Harajuku, something that had recently been built, as always. Japan was a country of modernity, which was ironic that it had been through a mode of isolation before Americans had arrived and changed many things. Including the idea of a mall, which then translated into big shops, which then became some department convenience building.

Rina was picking at a cinnamon roll which was strongly bothering Taka-san because he was brought up to believe that if one orders dessert, one should eat it. He always had some sort of feminine side. We readers all knew he was straight as a pole. Straighter than any of the regulars, even.

They sat in an uncomfortable silence, and then he broke it up by saying, "How's your mom?"

Typical nice guy. If you have to talk, you'll discuss something about your future in-laws. Rina almost wished Sengoku was there. He would brighten up the whole place by cracking some funny jokes and risk his hand by slipping under hers. Jin was always irritated by him, but Rina found his presence to be warm, cheery, and probably not boring.

"She's okay. How about yours?"

"Fine, though she's busy fixing up the banana pudding you kinda smushed."

"Fuji okay with it?" She stabbed the roll with a spork. She wasn't sure whether she had the appetite to eat it.

"He's fine."

_He's plain,_ she thought. _Maybe I should break up with him. I'm always looking for the perfect guy but Takashi doesn't seem to cut it._

Her train of thought was cut short when he picked up her hand with the spork and examined it. "I didn't know you liked to draw."

Rina quickly withdrew her hand, embarrassed. "It's just a hobby. And how do you know?"

He smiled, something she couldn't put direct eye contact. Shy, just like always.

"It's a talent of mine. I run a sushi shop- duh, and there are all sorts of customers that come in. There's old and young, polite and rude, natives and foreigners, big and small. Sometimes, when I get lonely, without being with my friends, which is almost all the time, I take a second to observe the variety of people. It makes me feel small, y'know? All those people I have to serve and meet and cut up sushi and still make them happy."

He closed his eyes for a moment, letting his words sink into the environment.

"I'm really glad that I met you, Rina-chan."

Rina felt ashamed, so ashamed that she imagined she was naked in front of all these people, ashamed that she actually thought of ditching this honest-to-God guy who was just alone doing what he needed to do. She would never forgive herself for this.

"I... I am too."

"I'm so happy you think so too."

Then he was out of his comfort zone, and began blushing deeply. She began eating her roll with great gusto so that she wouldn't have to talk to him again. She tore out some of the pastry and dunked it into her coffee, which she had mixed in three packets of sugar when it came.

"Oh, that is so good!" She dipped on into her cup again and fed it to Takashi.

The pastry was good, but her fingertips were better.

---

The rest of the day went swimmingly well for them. There was a photo booth-- they'd stop and made monkey faces and then waste at least five hundred yen trying to get the photos out-- and then a street performance, which was both enjoyable, shopping (of course) and finally a parfait.

Kawamura was a bit too engrossed in his dessert that Rina had to wave her hand in his face to get his attention. "What?" he said abruptly.

Rina grinned. "Your friends are here."

The regulars were wandering, window shopping and apparently out of money. Thank god Tezuka-buchou wasn't here, Takashi thought. The whole team was there, with the exception of Ryoma, of course, and Kaidoh, who was possibly out training in the hopes of beating Momo in a match someday.

"Dammit, Rina, duck under the table! Or else they'll ruin this date, as in right now!"

"OK!" she whispered in a sense of urgency, though she was pleased that he had to call it a date. It meant that he considered this relationship to be romantic, and that had to mean a big kiss at the end. Or maybe not. This plan might not work, and they might not go out for months. She sighed. She already hated men for being so interfering.

He tossed the parfait under her, and she began slurping it until he shushed her, which was about five seconds before they got to his table. Luckily there was a long white tablecloth that hid Rina effectively as a polar bear in the snow.

"Yo, Taka-san!" Momo called out. "Didn't fancy seeing you our here. I'd thought you were working again in the sushi parlor."

"I got a day off," Taka replied casually. "Just thought I'd spend the last hours of break here."

Unfortunately, he had reckoned without Fuji. Fuji, the ultimate sadist, began a long interrogation which, Taka-san would learn, would induce pressure onto him.

Fuji sat down and pulled his chair near the table. He ignored the second chair which recently had seated Rina.

"Now, Taka-san..." he began in his sweet and honeyed voice. It was mesmerizing, hypnotic, and almost sleep-inducing.

"...Do tell me why the tablecloth is moving..."

Kawamura tried to look away.

"Don't look away. Your friends can't help you now."

"And then there's the spilled parfait on the ground..."

For the parfait had spilled, indeed. Rina was not very good at coping with pressure.

Oishi shoved him a good three feet. He wouldn't pay the consequences yet. But he would later. "C'mon, Fuji, we all know Taka-san is hiding his girlfriend somewhere. It's just that we don't need to stalk him."

"But why not?" Fuji's voice became more and more sugared. It was a sure sign of him being infuriated, which Oishi ignored and answered sharply, "Because. You have a girlfriend, too, right?"

"How do you know?"

Eiji was interested. "Eh? Really, Fuji? Tell me, tell me!"

Oishi took advantage of the situation to wink at Taka-san, who sighed in relief.

He mouthed, "All the regulars trust me so much it's ridiculous. Even Tezuka-buchou told me of this guy he wanted to beat up so badly and yet kiss him lovingly on the lips."

---

"You can get out now."

He helped Rina into the chair, which was a bit of effort. Her knees ached, and she was going through a big cramp, which was _so_ not cool. She was going to get a big coupon for a spa massage. If she could get one before Yuuki cut out all the beauty ads between the classified and shopping section in the newspaper.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I am. Fuji's such an asshole. I don't get why he wants to stalk any of us."

Taka-san stood up and smiled. "Natural tendencies, if you will."

Rina snorted. "Natural tendencies, my ass. It's like Fuji dating guys. It's not even possible."

"Actually..."

"You're not serious?!?"

"No, it's just that he never gave a thought to girls when I was in middle school. Now that we're in high school..."

He looked pointedly away. Rina caught his drift, and decided not to pursue the subject.

"So, uh, what do you want to do now?" she asked him.

He glanced at his watch and replied, "Guess we can call it a day. I'm beat."

"Same here."

Taka-san paused for a split second when he heard her reply. Was it possible, he pondered, that she was tiny bit disappointed by his reaction? He shook his head. It was impossible. In all the time that he had known Rina from customer to first girlfriend (for him, of course) she'd never been disappointed, not even a tiny bit.

They walked to the end of the street, occasionally sniffing a pastry or two, marveling at the fashion boutiques but agonizing that they had no money left except for the change they needed for the train ride home. Rina was waiting for him to move first, and it was tormenting her far worse than any Prada high heels she would never get. _I want him to kiss me,_ she thought furiously, and then she was angrier for actually thinking that he would have the courage to actually do that and then she realized that maybe he did since the "hand incident" was probably planned---

"Rina?"

"Wha- who?"

"It's me. Taka-san. Your boyfriend, remember? Or have you gotten stuck in some alien spaceship and they wiped away your memories when I turned my back like in some random anime?"

"Ahahah! Don't mingle me in with those _otakus,_ Takashi." she laughed.

"Seriously though. It could happen."

"And my shoes are made out of gold." she retorted.

He winced. "Ouch. That hurt."

"It wasn't supposed to."

---

The house was empty, so Rina had dozed on the couch like a sack of rocks, while Taka-san sat beside her, turning on the telly and pressing mute, watching a high school tennis tournament Oishi had told him about. But after a couple of seconds he got bored since all the teams had ordinary players, and he missed the excitement that the team from Seigaku used to bring every year, no matter what place they received in the playoffs.

His eyes wandered.

Of course, as in all typical romance movies, the girl's head was resting on his lap. Her face looked serene, her wrists were slender, her boobs were---

He pressed the mute button accidentally, and the ironic thing was, when he was staring at Rina, he didn't notice the fact that his thumb pressed hard on the volume. Ouch.

---

After an episode of cleaning up and yelling over the television, Rina couldn't go back to sleep. Which led to an uncomfortable silence.

"Um..." Rina started, because it was always safe to start first.

"Don't. Just don't. I hate it when we get awkward like that." Kawamura spit out bitterly.

"What do you want me to do, then? Sit down like nothing happened?"

"No, it's just that... that... we haven't gotten anywhere, have we?"

"What do you mean?"

"Akutsu told me that you had a lot of boyfriends. What do _I_ mean, in you eyes?"

"Takashi..." Rina said, slowly. "You really love me, don't you?"

"No, it's just---

She grinned, like a happy kid that was presented with cake. "You. Love. Me." she said, and laughed manically when Takashi just continued to blush. He didn't deny it. He always told the truth and never denied it if it was, with a few exceptions.

Her eyes sparkled with warm enthusiasm and she whispered into his ear, "Then I guess you wouldn't mind if, you know..."

"Go ahead. I'm all yours."

She pulled him into an embrace, and kissed him firmly on the lips. Sexy. Confident. Things that she wasn't sure of until she had met him, and now she had the upper hand. She loved it, the crazy whoosh of falling in love, being in love, and finally, _believing_ in love.

_She loved him too._

* * *

**Author's Note:** I can't believe I've turned into some trashy romance author... 


	9. Wedding

**Author's Note:** I still do not own Prince of Tennis. Er... I hope this chapter doesn't confuse you too much. Oh yeah. And I need to mention that Rina is not a second year in middle school. She is a third year, to correct any misunderstandings. That-a-way, you don't have to be confused with the age gap between her and her boyfriend.

Right. For the morons that did not read the summary, it's no longer a "fun and cute" story. I think I'll make it a lot more serious ever since I kept reading stories that have about twenty chapters that try to get the main characters to 'like' the female. We are tired of waiting!! (but I congratulate whoever writes a story up to twenty chapters)

* * *

- 

-

-

Rina held up her bouquet of roses for her mother. Tears dripped down her dark eyelashes, which would have smeared her mascara had it not been waterproof.

Her mother was getting married. Again.

She could hardly remember the first time her mother had brought in a strange man with strange faces. She was only two when her real father had legally divorced from her mother. She did not know her father's face, and pictures were forbidden after Yuuki had found about another woman sleeping with him. It brought bad memories. Her image of love was crushed completely after her mother kept sleeping with so many types of men. Some of them were all right, until her mother decided it wasn't worth it. And it would destroy her hope that her mother would find true love.

She had doubts with herself, as well. Taka-san may have begun to like her deeply, maybe more than an ordinary female relation, but did she truly, honestly, _love him_?

Rina buried her face in the sweet smelling flowers, breathing in the scent. She would answer the question later. When she was more positive.

Because there was no one else to steal her heart and there was only time to convince her.

Jin came to her and touched her arm, gently. "Be happy for her. She's just going to get a kick out of this."

She nodded, and wiped her tears away with a swipe of her arm.

"It's just... hard."

"Yeah, I know." He was older, he was stronger. He was, after all... a man. He was the only permanent male that would stick to one house only.

"I don't want her to get hurt again."

"I know." And he did.

It was a secret, actually. They had started dating around by the time that she had met Taka-san, but she had not answered any of Rina and Jin's questions until she started wearing a big ring; shiny, silver, and absolutely perfect. He was handsome but not a player as far as she could tell, and they seemed oblivious to whatever objection they faced.

"I love him," she had said, face lighting up like a luminous fire, joy etched on every pore of her visage. "And he said that he loved me too."

Rina had not said the words that she thought she should have said-- "Men will tell you whatever comes into their heads, whether they mean it or not."

---

On another Sunday, arms wrapped around Takashi, she started confiding in him. She began telling him about her mother. How Satoshi-- that was her father's name-- deserted her after she was born.

"It's my fault." she said simply. "He got bored of my mother."

She noticed that his grip had gotten a little tighter. "That's not true and you know it."

"It is my fault." she insisted. "And now she's gone with some other rag-tag substitute."

"Do you sincerely look at men like that?" Takashi asked her. It wasn't a question. "If you do, then stop talking to me. Right now, Rina. This might be our last conversation."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I didn't mean it like that. I just thought that I wished she would just stop."

His grip relaxed, and then he hugged her, like that. "Thank goodness. I thought for one moment you wouldn't."

They were on Takashi's bed. Rina hadn't planned for sex, nothing like that, but somehow, there was an impulse in her head._ Take his clothes off_, a voice in her head repeated. _Let us be connected as one_.

No, she told herself firmly. She was sticking to only kisses. She was _not_ going to give her body.

Rina was no virgin. When she said she had "a few boyfriends", what she really meant were more than a dozen hot-and-heavy flings. She had learned the ultimate technique from her mother, flirting, and giving her tongue more than a few times. She could predict what was going to happen. Her first time went perfectly, with a much better looking guy than Takashi, but the relationship ended a tad rocky with a couple of other girls.

It said something about her that she had set up a schedule for boys. Summer were more of her specialty, especially at the beach. The first six weeks were bliss. But after six weeks and two days, they started to become not so perfect, and she cut them off completely, either ending with another unhappy guy and beginning something else.

It was different with Takashi, though. There was something that suppressed her from acting the way she usually was. He had dignity and respect and kindness. It wasn't ordinary, but it in a good way. He made her feel good to be in his presence.

Was it enough to cut her off from her circle of never ending flings? She hoped it would.

The phone rang; and Taka-san reached lazily to pick it up. He listened quietly for a few moments, then hung up.

"I gotta go. Dad's holding up a long line." He kissed her on the mouth. "Do you want me to walk you home?"

Rina smiled, feeling much better. "Nah. Maybe next time. Oh, and I have to tell you something later."

"Something important, huh?" He put on his coat; it was getting a little bit chilly outside. "Call me, O.K.?"

They set outside of the house, her waving goodbye, and him running in the opposite direction.

---

"Do you, Narita Konjitsu, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?" the priest asked the man beside her mother. Yuuki looked serene, with an expression that the newly wedded usually had on. There were the aroma of white clovers around her, which, when Rina was little, thought was the most wonderful perfume in the whole world. Her dress was lovely as well. The makeshift brooch was plucked lilies-of-the-valley, giving the impression that she was a princess, ready to live her happily-ever-happy.

He smiled, charmingly. "I do," he intoned.

"And do you, Akutsu Yuuki, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

She looked at him, adoring and loving.

"I do."

---

_Fact:_ Rina was the one who planned everything, from the sacred sake they had drank as symbolism in matrimony, and the costumes for the age-old ceremony in where a traditional Japanese couple were supposed to go through.

She was exhausted. Narita had brought quite a few friends, and some of the girls-- drunk, apparently-- were flirting with Akutsu.

Fortunately, they didn't notice Taka-san, studiously making his way through a selection of organic salad.

"Wow. I can't believe that you planned all of this. You're so responsible." He dug his fork into a chunk of chicken.

Rina rolled her eyes. "This is the last wedding. The next time, she can go marry an Elvis impersonator and he'll deal with Las Vegas."

Taka shrugged. "Who knows? It might be the last time on the alter."

Rina smiled, appreciating the sarcasm in his voice.

Someone, however, overheard their conversation. "Next time? It's, like, in front of _God_. You can't just say that."

A girl, with big hair and a bossy mouth, was sitting at their table. Rina recognized her as the sole person that did not touch a drop of champagne, or eat cake. She was munching, incredibly, a bag of fat-free chips. "I mean, most people get married for only one time."

"Right," Rina said sadly. "Most people."

Taka-san sensed her loneliness and grabbed her hand. "C'mon. Let's go."

---

They went outside, in a private place.

"You didn't tell me you were still sensitive about that."

"I am."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because you wouldn't make it better. That's all."

Taka-san paused. The truth was in her eyes. Besides, it was almost over.

"Let's go home." he suggested and she nodded.

-

-

-

* * *

Author's Note: ... 

Man! Powerful chapter! But, like I warned you, it was pretty deep. Not really interesting, but hey, I'm trying to finish this story.


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